Director Joy Dyment has warned that its waiting list will only get longer if it doesn’t receive the necessary cash to provide its free, confidential service in Conwy, Denbighshire, Flintshire and Wrexham.

Stepping Stones, which has 20 professionally-qualified counsellors, is concerned about a potential 30% cut in funding by Flintshire County Council, as the authority is considering reducing voluntary sector funding by up to 10% in 2015/16, with the potential for further reductions in future years.

“It’s putting very small charities like us under a lot of pressure,” said Joy. “It will threaten us if we don’t get replacement funding.

“Our waiting list will get bigger and bigger. Charities like ours are vulnerable. It’s my job to look for funding but there is a lot of competition.

“I know very well that local authorities are under pressure. The 30% cut will be spread over the next three years. I expect other local authorities will follow suit, it will come.”

The funding cut couldn’t come at a worse time with the increase in victims coming forward in the wake of former children’s home boss Allen’s trial.

It does receive funding from Operation Pallial, but only for those directly referred under the probe into historic child abuse, and a £20,000 one-off payment by the Welsh Government to address the backlog was merely a “drop in the ocean”.

Joy said: “I now need to sit down with my trustees and see what services we can provide.

“It’s very frustrating, we’re the only charity in North Wales that provides this very specialist counselling.

“We don’t have students – we can’t have students – as it’s a complex area where we have to provide a high quality service, and we provide that for free.

“We hope that the government are going to take on board that it needs to be sustained. We’re trying to develop a Friends of Stepping Stones to get volunteers to help with fundraising.”

Neil Ayling, Chief Officer Social Services for Flintshire council, said: “Flintshire is considering reducing voluntary sector general funding by 10% in 2015/16 with the potential for further reductions. The detail of this has not yet been agreed and it is not proposed that there is a 10% reduction across the board.

“Separate funding contributions from all the North Wales authorities for Stepping Stones to assist with the counselling referrals arising out of Operation Pallial will be protected.”